A federal appeals court ordered an anti-Islamic film removed from YouTube on Wednesday and reinstated a copyright suit by an actress whose voice was dubbed over with an insult against the prophet Muhammad, leading to death threats against the actress and violence in the Middle East.

Although Cindy Garcia had only a brief role in the film, she has a right to control the use of her performance and to protect herself from fraud and physical harm, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said in a 2-1 ruling. The dissenting judge said that Garcia's minimal performance was not entitled to copyright protection, and that the court's takedown order may violate freedom of speech.

Garcia of Los Angeles was hired in 2011 for a minor part in a film called "Desert Warrior" and was paid $500. Instead, her scene appeared in "Innocence of Muslims," a 14-minute video shown on YouTube in 2012 by the same filmmaker, Mark Basseley Youssef. Her performance was partially dubbed over to include the line, "Is your Muhammad a child molester?"

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The film sparked riots in the Middle East, causing more than 50 deaths, and was controversially implicated by State Department officials in the death of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, in September 2012.

YouTube later removed the video from circulation in most of the region. But Google Inc., which owns YouTube, rejected Garcia's repeated requests to take the film out of general circulation. A federal judge also refused to remove the video, saying Garcia had agreed to let Youssef use her performance in the film.

But the appeals court said a performer who contributes at least "some minimal degree of creativity" has a right to control how that performance is used, to the extent of protecting herself from deception and physical harm.

"The film differs so radically from anything Garcia could have imagined when she was cast that it can't possibly be authorized by any implied license she granted Youssef," said Chief Judge Alex Kozinski in the majority opinion.

Google argued that the continued airing of the video is in the public interest and that a takedown order would have little impact at this point. But Kozinski said Garcia has already had to move her home and her business, and has shown that "removing the film from YouTube will help disassociate her from the film's anti-Islamic message."

Dissenting Judge N. Randy Smith said Garcia has no rights over a film made by others and failed to show how she would be harmed by continued airing of the video.

Garcia, in a statement released by her lawyers, said she was grateful that the court recognized "the real danger that I have been in since YouTube posted that hateful film."